Hideki Matsuyama wins the 2017 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational
In his 100th start on the PGA TOUR Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama posted a 9-under 61 in the final round at
Firestone CC to secure his fifth TOUR title, and third this season. Matsuyama’s round included an eagle
at the par-5 second hole, along with seven birdies, with three consecutive birdies to close the round and
win the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational by five strokes over Zach Johnson. Charley
Hoffman, who lost a playoff at last week’s RBC Canadian Open, finished third at 10-under 270.
Matsuyama wins his fifth PGA TOUR event at the age of 25 years, 5 months, 12 days. He earns the 25th win by
a player in his 20s on TOUR this season.
Matsuyama’s PGA TOUR victories:
2014 the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide Insurance
2016 Waste Management Phoenix Open
2017 World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions
2017 Waste Management Phoenix Open
2017 World Golf championships-Bridgestone Invitational
With the win, Matsuyama, who entered this week No. 3 in the FedExCup standings, regained the No. 1
position which he had held for a total of 10 weeks earlier this season. He now leads Jordan Spieth by 114
points with 2,754 points. Matsuyama also returns to the top of the PGA TOUR Money List this season.
Matsuyama’s 9-under 61 is his career low round on the PGA TOUR, bettering his previous-best 63 by two
strokes (63/R3/2015 Waste Management Phoenix Open, 63/R2/2015 BMW Championship).
Matsuyama’s 9-under 61 is the lowest final-round score, by three strokes, in any World Golf
Championships event. The previous low finish by a winner at the Bridgestone Invitational was 64 (-6) by
Hunter Mahan (2010) Keegan Bradley (2012).
Matsuyama’s 61 matched the 18-hole record at the Bridgestone Invitational (Tiger Woods/R2/2000, Tiger
Woods/R2/2013, Sergio Garcia/R2/2014).
Matsuyama owns three wins and three runner-up finishes on the PGA TOUR this season (1/World Golf
Championships-HSBC Champions, 1/Waste Management Phoenix Open, 1/WGC-Bridgestone
Invitational, 2/CIMB Classic, 2/SBS Tournament of Champions, T2/U.S. Open). Matsuyama now has six
victories in his last 20 starts worldwide.
Matsuyama is now one of 12 players with multiple victories in World Golf Championships and joins Tiger
Woods and Dustin Johnson with more than one WGC win in the same season;
Player Country WGC Wins
Tiger Woods USA 18
Dustin Johnson USA 5
Geoff Ogilvy AUS 3
Darren Clarke NIR 2
Jason Day AUS 2
Ernie Els RSA 2
Hunter Mahan USA 2
Rory McIlroy NIR 2
Phil Mickelson USA 2
Ian Poulter ENG 2
Adam Scott AUS 2
Hideki Matsuyama JPN 2
With the win, Matsuyama is the first player from Japan to win the Bridgestone Invitational and the seventh
international winner of the Bridgestone Invitational (Craig Parry/Australia/2002, Darren Clarke/Northern
Ireland/2003, Vijay Singh/Fiji/2008, Adam Scott/Australia/2011, Rory McIlroy/Northern Ireland/2014,
Shane Lowry/Ireland/2015, Hideki Matsuyama/Japan/2017).
With the victory, Matsuyama joined Tiger Woods and Vijay Singh with the Ohio double with victories at
both the Memorial Tournament in Dublin and Bridgestone Invitational in Akron.
Along with the Bridgestone Invitational and HSBC Champions victories this season, Matsuyama’s only
other top-10 finish in 17 WGC appearances was a T9 at the 2015 Dell Technologies Match Play.
The top three players in the Official World Golf Ranking did not change this week – No. 1 Dustin Johnson,
No. 2 Jordan Spieth and No. 3 Hideki Matsuyama.
It’s worth noting heading into the PGA Championship next week, Matsuyama has recorded top-15 results
at three major championships this season (T11/Masters, T2/U.S. Open, T14/The Open).
This week marked Matsuyama’s fifth start at Firestone CC. A T12 in 2014 was his best result in four
previous appearances.
Matsuyama, with five victories, extends his record as the Japanese player with the most PGA TOUR
wins. Japanese players to win on the PGA TOUR: Isao Aoki (1983 Sony Open in Hawaii), Shigeki
Maruyama (2001 Greater Milwaukee Open, 2002 AT&T Byron Nelson, 2003 Wyndham Championship),
Ryuji Imada (2008 AT&T Classic), Hideki Matsuyama (2014 Memorial Tournament, 2016 Waste
Management Phoenix Open, 2016 WGC-HSBC Champions, 2017 Waste Management Phoenix Open,
2017 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational).
Hideki Matsuyama’s Statistics
R1 5 of 14 fairways, 11 of 18 greens, 3 of 7 scrambling, 27 putts
R2 9 of 14 fairways, 15 of 18 greens, 3 of 3 scrambling, 30 putts
R3 8 of 14 fairways, 12 of 18 greens, 4 of 6 scrambling, 28 putts
R4 7 of 14 fairways, 16 of 18 greens, 2 of 2 scrambling, 25 putts
About Hideki Matsuyama
HEIGHT: 5-11 WEIGHT: 198
BIRTHDATE: February 25, 2026
BIRTHPLACE: Ehime, Japan
RESIDENCE: Sendai, Japan
EDUCATION: Tohoku Fukushi University
TURNED PROFESSIONAL: 2013
JOINED TOUR: 2013
Zach Johnson
Zach Johnson headed into the final round with a share of the 54-hole lead and failed to secure the win
despite a 2-under 68 which included just one bogey (No. 3). Johnson hit 14 of 18 greens in the final
round.
This was the fifth time that Johnson had led or shared the lead on the PGA TOUR through 54 holes. He
had converted three of the previous four 54-hole leads into victories. The co-lead was Johnson’s first time
ever leading through any single round of a World Golf Championships event.
Zach Johnson 54-hole leads on the PGA TOUR –
Tournament Lead Finish
2004 Bellsouth Classic 2 strokes 1st
2009 Sony Open 1 stroke 1st
2009 Quail Hollow Championship 2 strokes T11
2009 Valero Texas Open 2 strokes 1st
2017 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational Tied 2nd
The third-round leader has only won three of the last 11 times at the Bridgestone Invitational. This season
on the PGA TOUR the 54-hole leader has gone on to win 12 of 39 events, most recently Jordan Spieth at
The Open Championship.
Johnson was seeking his first World Golf Championships title in his 41st appearance in World Golf
Championships events. The runner-up finish at the Bridgestone Invitational is his 11th top-10 finish and
best result in a WGC stroke-play event. He was third at the 2006 Dell Technologies Match Play when he
defeated Tom Lehman in the Consolation Match.
Johnson moved from No. 40 to No. 28 in the Presidents Cup US Team standings and seeks to make his
fifth consecutive appearance at the Presidents Cup at Liberty National Golf Club in New Jersey next
month.
Johnson’s previous best showing in 18 PGA TOUR starts this season was T5 in his hometown event at
last month’s John Deere Classic, now one of four top-10s this season.
Charley Hoffman
Charley Hoffman, in search of his fifth PGA TOUR win in his 332nd career start, posted a final-round 4-
under 66 but came up short of winning, finishing six back of Matsuyama in third place. His most recent
victory came at the 2016 Valero Texas Open. Last week, he lost a playoff to Jhonattan Vegas at the RBC
Canadian Open, one of seven top-10 finishes this season.
Hoffman was attempting to become the first player since Jordan Spieth at the 2015 Masters Tournament
to win a title after losing a playoff the previous week. Spieth lost a playoff at the Shell Houston Open
before his Masters win.
In the last two weeks, Hoffman has advanced from No. 24 to No. 8 in the Presidents Cup US Team
standings thanks to a runner-up finish at the RBC Canadian Open and his solo-third at the Bridgestone
Invitational. Hoffman seeks to finish in the top-10 following the Dell Technologies Championship at TPC
Boston to make the team. Captain Steve Stricker will have two captain’s picks on September 6 before the
team heads to Liberty National Golf Club for the Presidents Cup later that month.
Hoffman seeks to advance to the FedExCup Playoffs and reach the TOUR Championship for the third
time in his career (4th in 2010, 10th in 2015). Hoffman is one of 16 players to have made it to the
FedExCup Playoffs in each of the 10 years the Playoffs have existed. In addition to being one of 16
players to have made it to the FedExCup Playoffs in each of the 10 years the Playoffs have existed,
Hoffman is one of only three players (Phil Mickelson, Bubba Watson) to have qualified for the BMW
Championship in all 10 years.
Since a 2-under 70 in the opening round of this year’s U.S. Open at Erin Hills, Hoffman has posted 22 of
24 rounds under par. The exceptions were 73-72 in rounds two and three at The Open Championship.
The solo-third marks Hoffman’s best result, and only top-10 finish, in 13 World Golf Championships
appearances. In four previous appearances at the Bridgestone Invitational, Hoffman’s best showing was
T22 in 2007 when he made his tournament debut.
Thomas Pieters
Thomas Pieters fired a final-round 1-over 71 to fall to solo-fourth after sharing the 54-hole lead with Zach
Johnson. Pieters joined Russell Knox (71/R2) and Rickie Fowler (71/R2) as the only players to shoot a
round over par during the week and finish in the top nine.
This was the first time that Pieters has held or shared a 54-hole lead in a PGA TOUR event. On the
European Tour, Pieters has held or shared three previous times and carried one to victory – the 2015
Czech Masters.
Pieters, a Special Temporary Member on the PGA TOUR, has five previous starts in WGC events. A T5
at the Mexico Championship this year was his previous-best showing in the WGC events before his 4th
this week.
Pieters made his 16th PGA TOUR start this week and now owns four top-five showings (T5/2017 Mexico
Championship, T2/2017 Genesis Open, T4/2017 Masters Tournament, 4th/Bridgestone Invitational).
At 34th in the Official World Golf Ranking to begin the week, the 25-year-old Pieters is the highest-ranked
Belgian player in history and is projected to move inside the top 25.
Pieters played on the European Team in the 2016 Ryder Cup and represented Belgium in the Olympic
Golf competition in Brazil in 2016.
As a Special Temporary Member, Pieters is eligible for unlimited sponsor exemptions for the remainder of
the 2016-17 season as he attempts to earn a PGA TOUR card for the 2017-18 season through the Nonmember
FedExCup Points List. It’s important to note: Special Temporary Members are not eligible for the
FedExCup Playoffs, but Special Temporary Members or non-members who subsequently become regular
PGA TOUR members by winning an official event during the season will be counted on the FedExCup
points list, along with any FedExCup points earned as a non-member (excluding those won at World Golf
Championships events as a non-member) and thus be eligible for the FedExCup Playoffs.
Pieters currently has 391 non-WGC FedExCup points, likely enough to earn a spot in the FedExCup
Playoffs.
Additional Player Notes
Rory McIlroy, winner of the 2014 Bridgestone Invitational, made three early birdies to sit one stroke off the
lead at 9-under through six holes of the final round before back-to-back bogeys at the 14th and 15th holes
derailed his chances. McIlroy finished T5 at 7-under 273, his sixth top-10 in 10 starts on the PGA TOUR
this season. During the week, McIlroy hit 52 of 56 tee shots (excluding par-3s) over 300 yards. McIlroy
moved from No. 53 to No. 43 in the FedExCup standings.
Canada’s Adam Hadwin finished T5 in his first World Golf Championships appearance, one of nine
players in the field making their WGC debut this week. Hadwin, a first-time TOUR winner at this year’s
Valspar Championship, sat at No. 12 in the Presidents Cup International Team standings before the week
and seeks to become the third Canadian to play in the Presidents Cup (Mike Weir, Graham DeLaet).
After playing the first four holes of the final round 4-over, J.B. Holmes produced a 6-under 29 on the
inward nine, including a final-hole eagle 2 when he holed out from 105 yards, to match the back-nine
record (five players) at the Bridgestone Invitational.
Jordan Spieth and Matt Kuchar were paired together in the final round for the first time since their epic
final-round duel in the final group at The Open Championship, won by Spieth two weeks earlier. Both
players shot 68 on Sunday at Firestone with Spieth (T13) finishing one stroke ahead of Kuchar (T17).
World No. 1 Dustin Johnson fired a final-round 4-under 66, his lowest closing round since a 66 at the Dell
Technologies Championship at TPC Boston last year, to finish T17.
Akron native Harold Varner III finished T50. Varner made his World Golf Championships debut after
winning the Australian PGA Championship late last year to qualify for this event.
Miscellaneous notes
Most World Golf Championships appearances
(Mexico Championship, Dell Technologies Match Play, Bridgestone Invitational and HSBC Champions)
Westwood, Lee 58
Garcia, Sergio 53
Mickelson, Phil 51
Els, Ernie 47
Furyk, Jim 47
Scott, Adam 46
Woods, Tiger 44
Poulter, Ian 42
Johnson, Zach 41
First-time Bridgestone Invitational participants
There were 22 players participating in their first-ever Bridgestone Invitational this week, including nine (bold
below) who made their World Golf Championships debut. Of those playing their first WGC event, Adam Hadwin
(T5), Hudson Swafford (T10) and Xander Schauffele (T13) all finished in the top 15 at Firestone CC:
Sam Brazel, Wesley Bryan, Bryson Dechambeau, Matthew Fitzpatrick, Tommy Fleetwood, Adam Hadwin,
Tyrrell Hatton, Scott Hend, Mackenzie Hughes, Si Woo Kim, Satoshi Kodaira, Shaun Norris, Renato
Paratore, Thomas Pieters, Jon Rahm, Xander Schauffele, Andy Sullivan, Hudson Swafford, Hideto Tanihara,
Harold Varner III, Jeunghun Wang, Fabrizio Zanotti.
Peter Jacobsen
Peter Jacobsen was named the 2017 Ambassador of Golf by Northern Ohio Golf Charities. The Ambassador of
Golf Award is presented annually at the Bridgestone Invitational to a person who has fostered the ideals of the
game on an international level and whose concern for others extends beyond the golf course. Jacobsen joins
an illustrious list of Ambassador of Golf Award winners: 1981 Chi Chi Rodriguez; 1982 Bing Crosby; 1983 Byron
Nelson; 1984 Gene Sarazen; 1985 President Gerald Ford; 1986 Bob Hope; 1987 Dinah Shore; 1988 Joe Dey;
1989 Frank Chirkinian; 1990 Barbara Nicklaus; 1991 Arnold Palmer; 1992 Nancy Lopez; 1993 Roberto De
Vicenzo; 1994 President George H.W. Bush; 1995 Michael Bonnallack; 1996 Deane Beman; 1997 Peter
Thomson; 1998 Ken Venturi; 1999 Gary Player; 2000 Ben Hogan and Sam Snead; 2001 Del de Windt; 2002
Joanne Carner; 2003 Robert Dedman, Sr. and Jack Vickers; 2004 Lee Trevino; 2005 Pete Dye; 2006 Ken
Schofield; 2007 Tony Jacklin; 2008 Charlie Sifford; 2009 Hale Irwin; 2010 Tom Watson; 2011 Nick Price; 2012
Nick Faldo; 2013 Jack Nicklaus; 2014 Johnny Miller; 2015 Judy Rankin and 2016 Davis Love III.
Bogey-free rounds:
R1: Thomas Pieters (65)
R2: None
R3: Bubba Watson (66), Jon Rahm (67), Louis Oosthuizen (67)
R4: Hideki Matsuyama (61), Kevin Kisner (66), Gary Woodland (67), Justin Thomas (67)
Scoring average:
Front nine Back nine Total Cumulative
R1 35.934 35.158 71.092 —
R2 35.474 35.539 71.013 71.053
R3 35.421 35.039 70.461 70.855
R4 34.658 34.763 69.421 70.497
The most difficult hole in the final round was the par-4 9th (4.118), the easiest hole was the par-5 2nd
(4.618). For the week, No. 2 was the easiest (4.589) and the hardest was No. 9 (4.230).
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